Hoffenheim v Schalke Betting Preview

Both these sides are stuck in something of a rut at the moment, with Hoffenheim drawing all four of their games so far, while Schalke have lost all four of theirs and managed just one goal so far, with new manager Markus Weinzierl already under pressure after taking the step up from a much smaller club in Augsburg.

The draw’s the most common outcome in Hoffenheim’s home games since the start of last season as they’ve had a W6-D8-L5 record in these matches, with just one defeat in their last nine at home, though that did come against Schalke themselves on the final day of last season as they were thumped 4-1.

Indeed, Schalke have won four of their last five against Hoffenheim and since five of their seven road wins last term came against bottom-six sides, we’re backing them to pick up their first win of the season. They took the lead against Koln and that was another tough fixture after they’d travelled to Hertha and hosted Bayern prior to that, but this looks a much easier game and as a result they look a decent price, despite their poor start to the campaign.